Every Brilliant Thing in Manila: An Intimate Production with a Global Message

The Sandbox Collective and 9 Works Theatrical bring yet another astoundingly acclaimed Duncan Macmillan original to the Manila with their upcoming production of Every Brilliant Thing this February 2019.

Every Brilliant Thing starts conversations and educates audiences on mental health around the world through theater. The play revolves around the story of a character that makes a list of things that make life worth living; ice cream, water fights, staying up past your bedtime and being allowed to watch TV, in the course of her mom’s thoughts of taking her own life.

Macmillan’s work has been celebrated by critics around the world for not shying away from the realities regarding mental health and for handling this kind of topic in a way that is heart-felting and comedic at the same time.

Directed by Jenny Jamora and starring actress Teresa Herrera, the play will leave audiences with a lot to consider both in and out of the theater. “I want people to have a collective live experience of going through the same emotions,” Teresa Herrera shares, “We have the tools for empathy. I would like this play to be that for audiences. Is there a way to recreate this safe circle in the theater, at every show? I want to start a discussion.” She added, “Mental health affects everyone to some point to some degree and we should take responsibility for our actions. We have to respect this story. It’s about life.”

This play holds a unique format wherein the audiences are included in the performance. The lead character breaks through the 4th wall and interacts with the viewers as the narrative plays out.
Following on the heels of their recent staging of Macmillan’s play Lungs in September 2018, Every Brilliant Thing follows in the same vein with the type of intimate yet powerful material that Sandbox aims to produce. This one-character, one-act show taps into the part of all of us that is universally human – resilience through everyday life, compassion in adversity, and the desire to find happiness in the smallest things in life.

“I want people to have an encounter, to find their way through this issue.” As Toff de Venecia, artistic director of the Sandbox Collective, has shared, “Suicide and mental health is one big other that needs to be understood.”

Also unique to this play are the post-show discussions wherein The Sandbox Collective invites several mental health experts to have a dialogue about the topic for the audiences. This allows the theme of mental health to be further understood and explored in the space of openness, acceptance, and healing.

With a message that transcends global cultures, Every Brilliant Thing has been staged in locations worldwide after its debut in 2013. From the UK, the show has also been staged in Ireland, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, South Korea, and filmed for an HBO documentary in 2016.